Impact of materialism on tourists’ green purchase behavior: Extended norm activation model perspective

Abstract

In the context of tourists’ eco-friendly consumption behavior, this study examines the effects of materialism and the cardinal variables in the norm activation model (NAM; i.e. awareness of consequences, ascription of responsibility, and moral norms) on tourists’ green purchase behavior. Using an online structured questionnaire, useable data was collected from 405 tourists, and structural equation modeling in SmartPLS 3.0 was performed to examine the relationships. The results showed that materialism negatively affected awareness of consequences and moral norms but did not affect the ascription of responsibility. Interestingly, awareness of the consequences of environmental degradation did not significantly affect tourists’ green purchase behavior. Further, moral norms mediated the effects of materialism on tourists’ green purchase behavior. Thus, this study integrates materialism with the NAM and makes a novel contribution to adjoining literature on materialism and tourists’ green consumption literature. The role of materialism as an external locus-of-control to NAM and to predict tourists’ green consumption, along with subsequent managerial implications, are discussed further.